This summer marks the launch of an important program here at UCSF in our effort to translate science into better health for our own community.

Starting July 1, the campus and medical center will begin rolling out a Healthy Beverages Initiative across campus, starting at Mission Bay and culminating in October at Parnassus. Under the program, UCSF will sell a variety of zero-calorie waters, plain milk, coffee, tea, diet beverages and 100% pure fruit juice in our vending machines, coffee kiosks, cafeterias and eateries on our property and will eliminate sales of sugar-sweetened beverages.

The program has gained input from a broad group of faculty, staff and vendors on campus, including scientists who have been involved with the UCSF-led SugarScience initiative over the past year. That group reviewed more than 8,000 scientific papers and identified the most definitive science about the impact of sugar on our health, specifically the role of excess sugar in obesity, diabetes, heart disease, liver disease and dental caries.

Sugar-sweetened beverages are not only the single largest source of added sugar in our diets, but also the source with the strongest link to the leading chronic diseases in America: diabetes, heart disease and dental caries. With such strong scientific evidence and so many of our patients suffering from these diseases, it seemed appropriate for UCSF to take action.

While we are not the first to do this, I hope we will all take pride in having the broadest health vision. More than thirty health systems and hospitals nationwide already have launched similar efforts –...

I am very pleased to announce the appointment of Talmadge E. King, Jr., MD, as our new Dean of the UCSF School of Medicine and Vice Chancellor – Medical Affairs, effective July 1.

After a national search for a new dean to carry on the school’s legacy of excellence, we have found the best leader here among our own community. Chair of the Department of Medicine, Dr. King’s stellar career and tenure at UCSF extends back to 1997. His focus in patient care is interstitial lung diseases, in particular idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, sarcoidosis, connective tissue disease, hypersensitivity pneumonitis, drug-induced lung fibrosis and other rare diffuse lung disorders. Dr. King's research interests include pathogenesis, diagnosis and management of inflammatory and immunologic lung disease.

Consistently ranked among the nation’s top medical schools, the UCSF School of Medicine has never been stronger, and we have identified the ideal individual to guide it into the future. Talmadge is both an inspirational leader and an international expert in his field, and he will provide a clear course for the school as it not only navigates but continues to thrive in the changing world of health care.

I am deeply grateful to Dr. Bruce Wintroub for his extraordinary service as interim dean during the search process. He has ably led both the School of Medicine and the Department of Dermatology during this period. I also thank the members of the search committee, led by Drs. Catherine Lucey and Shaun Coughlin, for their investment of time that has resulted in this exceptional selection.

Please join me in congratulating Talmadge on his new role in leading the School of...